Washington’s wolf population continues to grow; pack documented west of Cascades

UPDATED: Thu., April 4, 2019, 8:43 p.m.

In this May 25, 2014, photo provided by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, a 100-pound adult male wolf is GPS radio-collared in the Mt. Emily Oregon Wildlife Management Unit in the Umatilla National Forest. (AP)

In 2018, six wolves were killed legally by tribal hunters, four were killed by WDFW in response to livestock attacks and two apparent human-caused deaths remain under investigation, according to the release.

Wolves killed at least 11 cattle and one sheep, and injured an additional 19 cattle and two sheep, according to the release.

“Wolves routinely face threats to their survival — from humans, other animals, and nature itself,” said Ben Maletzke, WDFW statewide wolf specialist, in a news release. “But despite each year’s ups and downs, the population in Washington has grown steadily and probably will keep increasing by expanding their range in the north and south Cascades of Washington.”

In an emailed statement, Conservation Northwest called the discovery of a pack west of the Cascades a “milestone” and “indication of the continued recovery of wolves in our state.”

The bill would direct the state to spend nearly $1 million over the next two years on nonlethal ways to keep wolves from killing livestock in northeast Washington, where the majority of the state’s wolves live.

The state wolf plan guidelines define a wolf pack as two or more animals traveling together in the winter.

Wolves are protected by state endangered species rules in the eastern third of the state, while they remain federally protected in the western two-thirds of the state.

According to the state’s wolf recovery plan, wolves can be delisted after 15 successful breeding pairs are documented for three consecutive years or after officials document 18 breeding pairs in one year.

Under either scenario, the pairs have to be distributed evenly throughout the state’s three wolf management areas.